Now, as all of us who watch Buffy and Angel (or read the wildfeeds and save an hour or two) know that evil forces are afoot of the "End the world and take our sweet time doing it." It's even been suggested they are working in tandem. If they are, this will be the center for investigating it.

Candidate 1: The First Evil: The First Evil, some minor demon from Episode two of the "Angel has regrets about his past Chronicles," has returned in all it's shapeshifting glory. Due to the amount of shapeshifting and guys in robes, most of us knew the First was back since episode one, but the duller sorts thought random girls were being dragged into dark alleys by monks for no reason. The First also has international reach, lots of powerful minions, and can release people from Hell. And Liliah getting up and walking around and talking to Wes, that's one of those things you shouldn't do when blind men are overunning SoCal. Also, the total annilation of several priesthoods, seers, and lawyers mimics the destruction of the Watchers. On the downside, The First, as everliving force of evil, would focus on the task at hand, taking out the Slayer Line, and then save work on whatever is happening in LA until latter.

Higher Power: Cordie's boss. Because Cordie isn't the orgin of this latest attempt to destroy the world. This is far too much of a master plan to have just been something conived by an evil even as great as Cordie. But what was the Goal? Unleashing the Beast? Couldn't have been. Connor knocking up Cordie? Yeah right, like it takes the end of the world to get a teenager to have sex. Destroying Wolfram and Hart, and all the little priesthoods and seers and stuff? Maybe. Creating a demon playground in LA? Nah, it's been done. Even the spoilers don't make this make much sense.

Cheese Guy: The man obsessed with cheese slices from "Restless." Angel is about as easy to understand this season as he was, and he must have a connection with the Primeval Slayer Force. Of course, the total lack of cheese seems to deflat this theory.

Sweet: Sweet is the name of the Dancing demon. There is a lot of stuff burning, whole cities are being brought to ruin, and he did have great power, probably greater than D'Hoffryn. However, the complete lack of musical numbers indicates it is not him.

Anya-anka: Cordelia Chaste steals some girl's boyfriend, she says "I hope that Bitka destroys the world someday, in a diffcult to understand way", and Anya says, "Done." It could happen.

Bunnies: It's going to happen someday

Your Turn.

Due to the amount of shapeshifting and guys in robes, most of us knew the First was back since episode one, but the duller sorts thought random girls were being dragged into dark alleys by monks for no reason.
Or there were some that never saw Amends and never knew that the First existed.

True.

Due to the amount of shapeshifting and guys in robes, most of us knew the First was back since episode one, but the duller sorts thought random girls were being dragged into dark alleys by monks for no reason. - Matt Pesti

Well, I wouldn't say I believed it to be random. I figured there was some purpose to it... I even suspected Slayers-in-Waiting. But as Josh suggested, I hadn't seen Amends, yet (only started watching Buffy in the latter part of Season 3).

As far as the shapeshifting is concerned, I thought it might tie into the Buffy episode where she's in the mental asylum... that she has to do battle with herself... seemed like a natural progression... how do you top battling the Mayor? You battle a demon cyborg. How do you top that? You battle a god. How do you top that? You battle your best friend. Battling the First almost seems like a step backwards, but as I've said on some of the Buffy boards, I think this has everything to do with Spike's path towards redemption.

As for Angel... I've already said why I do not believe the First is involved with the events in Los Angeles (too confusing for those who only watch one of the two shows).

As far as Angel's Big Bad's goal is concerned... I dunno. However, I think that Cordie was under its influence ever since she regained her memories... or maybe she duped them even then. Or, now that I think about it, perhaps it never was Cordie that returned and the being who has assumed her form used the Angel gang to give her Cordie's memories.

In any case, I think her impregnation was intentional... she slept with Connor so that she can give birth to the Big Bad. I wonder if we'll see a return to last season's prophesy that "the father will kill the son." Or perhaps Cordie is simply being manipulated by the being inside her (much like Darla was influenced by Connor).

I think, that in the end, it's going to be either that the First, and the "Higher Power" are in leauge with each other, or they are in direct opposition and are preparing to fight each other on this plain.

I think it might be that the First and the Big Bad,who we know now as Jasmine,are really just
pawns of some yet unnamed and unseen higher power.
Or if you perfer lower power.The fact that they appear at Sunnydale and Los Angeles simultaneously may indicate that there is an bigger overall plan that they are a part of.

Maybe it is bunnies.We never did learn why
Anya as bunnie phobia.

There was also the Ghost of Darla. Ghosts=First.

So Jasmine and the First had nothing in common whatsoever. Gosh, I wonder what would have happened if they both succeeded.

I've decided to argue that the original intent of the writters was to tie the First into the events in LA. Then someone needed to keep a few actors from Firefly under contract to Mutant Enemy. So all the problems with Chosen can be blamed on Firefly, which makes sense. Both Jasmine and Caleb come out of nowhere, and die before the real end of the season.

And also there is the tiny fact that ruined everything. The inability to do a decent crossover since Buffy switched to UPN. Not that the Buffy Angel Crossover "events" were very good, it's just that they could be done.

I thought that the amulet thing worked. As did Buffy and Angel's offscreen meeting after she was brought back.